Professional office furniture comprising desks are primarily designed to support desktop or laptop computers. These computers function with one or more cables running from the back of the computers to electric power outlets, data storage devices, and/or multifunctional printing devices that are normally situated below the desk. Therefore, furniture manufactured today normally comprises an aperture within the top surface of the desk near the location of the computer that permits the passage of the computer cables through the desktop to the floor on the undersurface of the desk. This aperture also adds to the aesthetic appearance of the desk by removing the cables from view.
The desktop aperture is covered with a desktop grommet, a wide variety of which are commercially available. A desktop grommet normally comprises a flat cylindrical cover connected permanently or removable to a hollow, cylindrical side wall housing (or flange) that snaps into the desktop aperture. The grommet is size matched to the desktop aperture to ensure that the grommet lies flat with the desktop surface for aesthetic purposes and to prevent any sharp projections.
The grommet may also comprise a wide variety of covers with an aperture of sufficient size to permit one (ideally) or more electrical cables to pass through the cover. The cover aperture is often semi-circular shaped and residing on the edge of the grommet outer perimeter (see FIG. 1, 60). Often, though, the grommet cover aperture, or the exposed desktop aperture, comprise sharp edges that can damage the cables due to their repeated rubbing against them, which can abrade the cables' outer material. The cables can also become damaged by excessive bending of the cables within the grommet cover. This is especially a problem with height adjustable desks whose repeated up/down motion can tug on and possibly impinge the cable as it passes over the grommet aperture edges.
In an attempt to reduce damage to the cables, the use of fabric sleeved grommets has been implemented in the industry to protect the cables. A sleeve comprising a hollow, cylindrical housing made from flexible, expandable material, which is often seamless, extends from the desktop aperture, and vertically downward underneath the desk. The computer's cables are then passed through and reside within the sleeve, whose smooth material reduces damage to the cables.
There is a difficulty, though, in securing the sleeve within the desktop aperture in a time and cost efficient manner that hides the top end of the sleeve from view. The exposure of the sleeve top end leads to excessive wear and tear which results in unsightly fraying of the sleeve material. One method to secure the sleeve is to tie the top end of the expandable sleeve to the cables using, for example, zip ties. Unfortunately, this often causes the sleeve to slide up and down the cable, thus reducing its ability to protect the cable, especially from the grommet cover's and desktop aperture's top edges. This is also especially problematic with height adjustable desks where the cable moves up/down through the sleeve each time the desk is raised or lowered.
Therefore, there is a need within the furniture industry to design a means for fixing a grommet sleeve in place within a desktop grommet aperture in a cost effective and aesthetic manner that secures the sleeve, and that can be used with a wide variety of cylindrical desktop grommets. This is especially needed for use with height adjustable desks to allow the cable to move up/down within the sleeve unimpeded because the sleeve is not attached to the cable.